Financial Regulatory Forum

By Stuart Gittleman

NEW YORK/LONDON, June 28 (Thomson Reuters Accelus) - The $453 million settlement Wednesday between Barclays and UK and U.S. officials over the manipulation of a global interest-rate setting formula may be the first in a series of big-money settlements, and those who strike a deal later may face steeper terms.

“I think additional settlements with the other [banks potentially involved in the conduct] are likely,” said Peter Henning, a former U.S. federal prosecutor and enforcement lawyer with the Securities and Exchange Commission who teaches law at Wayne State University in Detroit. (more…)

By Adam Samuel, Thomson Reuters Accelus contributor. The opinions expressed are his own.

LONDON, May 13 (Thomson Reuters Accelus) – The British Bankers’ Association left it until the day before the last available one to appeal against its defeat in the Administrative Court, to throw in the towel in its payment protection insurance judicial review application.

Having lost on every point in front of Mr Justice Ouseley, the BBA’s undignified judicial review challenge to both the Financial Services Authority and the Financial Ombudsman Service’s material on PPI complaint handling is over.

By Huw Jones

LONDON, March 8 (Reuters) – Banks operating in Britain were given more breathing space on Monday when their regulator, the Financial Services Authority, said it would not demand higher liquidity levels until the economy is recovering properly.

The FSA angered local banks last year by pushing ahead with a new liquidity regime requiring then to hold buffers of cash or highly-liquid assets like government bonds to withstand market shocks for a week or more without having to raise fresh capital.

The watchdog began rolling out the new regime last October, which includes frequent reporting of liquidity levels as part of wider efforts to learn from the financial crisis and lessen the need for more massive taxpayer bailouts of banks.

 By Kirstin Ridley

LONDON, Feb 17 (Reuters) – A quest by British regulators to protect local taxpayers by pruning the branches of global banks is riling the industry and risks running roughshod over a principle of free movement within Europe.

Britain’s Financial Services Authority (FSA), which unilaterally published tough new liquidity rules for banks last year, is keen to stop banks operating in London from setting up branches. It prefers subsidiaries, which are easier to police.

This push for “subsidiarisation” has gathered steam since the collapse of Icelandic banks in 2008 left UK depositors empty-handed, shattering a European principle that national regulators will protect the interests of international clients.

LONDON, Nov 18 (Reuters) – Britain’s opposition Conservative Party said it would ditch the core of a financial sector reform bill if it wins power next year, but lawyers expect other parts such as curbs on bankers’ pay would be introduced.
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LONDON, Oct 14 (Reuters) – Britain’s banking association cast doubt on Wednesday on plans for a new national body to spot asset bubbles and stop them from getting out of control, saying its members were not sure how it would work.
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By Andy Bruce
LONDON, July 27 (Reuters) – British businesses are slowly finding it easier to raise funds from debt markets and bank loans, two surveys showed on Monday, a day after Britain’s finance minister said he was concerned about lending costs.  Companies were able to raise more finance from longer-term markets like corporate bonds in the second quarter, according to respondents in the Bank of England’s quarterly Asset Purchase Facility report, as liquidity and price transparency in the market improved. (more…)

    LONDON (Reuters) – Basel II rules will remain the banking industry’s core guide to determining capital charges with only incremental changes expected to reflect lessons from the credit crunch, a top banking supervisor said on Tuesday. (more…)

  By Huw Jones   

  LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s banks will have to set aside far larger amounts of capital to cover trading risks in future, the country’s top financial watchdog said on Tuesday in a move backed by Europe’s top bank. (more…)